Problems with 2007 Toyota Prius EXTERIOR LIGHTING

Summary: my car began accelerating while i was in park. i own a 2007 toyota prius. two days ago, i drove to my destination, pulled into a parking spot, and turned off the car. i was early, so i turned the car back on (so i could listen to the radio while i waited). the car was in park and i did not have my feet on any pedals. the car was on for less than a minute when it began to drive forward. i both heard the sound of the motor engaging and visually processed that the car was moving. i immediately stepped on the brake hard and the car immediately came to a stop. my 4-year-old was distressed because the rolling and hard stop made a big jolt. the car was still in park. i released the brake pedal and the car stayed still. i do not know if this is related, but my car headlights randomly turn off while i am driving. if i toggle the switch off and back on, they always come back on. i took it to the local dealer, where the repair guy told me they frequently see this problem, and all they do is replace the headlights (which made no sense to me, because the bulbs aren't burned out). i would say this problem happens about once a week. *tr

Hid lights turn off anytime they want for no reason. turn lights on and off turn back on possibly stay on for seconds or for awhile. this is complete crap and very frustrating. i see tons of complaints online and no fixes. if toyota wants to fall to the wayside they should continue to make products like this. *tr

For approximately the past six months the passenger side headlight in our car has gone out intermittently. this occurs when there is any vibration in the road from, for example, uneven road surfaces. additionally, our car accelerates after hitting a bump or a pothole. *tr

We have a '07 toyota prius. over the last six months the headlights have been going on and off, usually only one but recently both have been shutting off. you can turn off the lights then turn them back on. the dealer said there is nothing they can do. toyota customer service said that they will limit how much the dealer can charge for the bulb but nothing else. i then called the dealer to set up the appointment to replace the bulbs and he said there may be other issues they will check first. obviously this is a prevalent problem that toyota is not taking ownership of. it is also a safety issue. we will no longer drive the car after dark. *tr

Headlights of my 2007 toyota prius would go off intermittently. *tr

On numerous occasions i have been pulled over for faulty headlamps but as soon as i power the lights off and back on the bulb is operational. i have taken the car to toyota multiple times and they have been unable to determine the cause of the problem. they are telling me to replace the entire wiring for a problem that has been posted publicly since the 2006 models came out. this should be covered by a recall as it is unsafe. the lights go off while the car is still or in motion. note i bought the car used in 2010 but it's clear that this has been an issue since the car was new based on the web forums i have been reading.

Tl*the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. the contact stated that while driving, the headlights would suddenly shut off. the contact was driving approximately 30 mph when the lights shut off. the lights would come back on when the on/off switch was turned off and on. the failure occurred intermittently. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer but no repairs were made when the complaint was filed. the vin was not available. the current and failure mileages were approximately 65,000.

My 2007 toyota prius headlights have been going on and off one at a time, and in the past month both have gone out at night. i have to turn them off and on to get the headlights to come back on, and this doesn't work everytime. i have been pulled over numerous times by the police for a light out, only to show them it isn't out. toyota will do nothing about this. *tr

Hid headlights. intermittent side to side failure. today both at once, could reset by turning off, then back on. however they both failed a few minutes later. very dangerous @ 65 mph in the dark. *tr

I purchased a new 2007 toyota prius that currently has 50k miles. the vehicle is equipped with hid headlamps. these lamps intermittently have started cycling on and off. one night i suddenly lost both headlamps. when you flick the switch on and off, the lamps come back on again... a least for a while. i found out i am not the only person with this defect! toyota has discontinued these lights in their 2010 versions. they know they are defective! toyota blames the bulbs but this sounds like a 25,000 volt power supply problem. these bulbs operate just like neon lighted signs! the bulb is nothing but a gas filled tube. a sudden voltage dip and the bulb goes out. this is a major safety problem. furthermore my local toyota dealer (joel confer) wants $220.00 per headlamp to replace the bulbs and the vehicle is still under warranty. toyota was charging $300.00 at one time for each bulb! this is also an issue for the ftc regarding this practice we were told these lamps last 2-3x as long as halogens. this itself is a fraud and a lie. *tr

My 2007 prius started having right headlight failure when i would drive on a rough road it would turn off then back on some 6 months ago. my husband checked the wiring and it came back on. the car had 45000 miles on it at this time. about 3 weeks ago both of them started turning on and off and 2 nights ago while driving home i had to turn them on and off 22 times and they would come back on and then get dim and then turn off. i took it to them at the dealership and they stated the left light was bad and the light and ballast were replaced for the tune of 614 dollars. they did nothing for the right light. i called and opened a case with toyota who will not pay for ay of it. this should be in a recall! *tr

This is the second time i am filing this same complaint. hid headlamp failure on my 2007 toyota prius. i have replaced my headlamps three times in the last two years. toyota initially wanted $350 just for the headlamp, plus additional $150 labor per bulb. i assume that pressure from toyota owners and possibly the nhtsa forced toyota to issue it's hid headlamp customer support program. whoopee! thousands of american owners are still driving with defective headlamps because toyota's "program" does not address anything but the cost of replacement. thanks for nothing. reducing the cost to replace defective headlamps from $350/bulb to $150/bulb, plus another $150/bulb for installation is nothing more than an insult to our intelligence. their hid system is still defective. the headlamps still fail with regularity. i have been pulled over three times in the last five months for having a headlamp out. my life and the life of the officer, who is just doing his duty, are both in jeopardy as we sit on the side of the interstate at night with cars and trucks whizzing by at 70+ mph, all because the nhtsa is not issuing a recall on an obviously defective system. what will it take? a highly publicized death before you do anything? there are thousands of complaints, including video proof of the hid bulbs blinking on and off one side at a time, regarding this system on message boards all over the internet. there is at least one class action lawsuit pending against toyota over this issue. not every owner is savvy enough to understand that the problem is not their's alone. the hundreds of complaints you have received are just the tip of the iceberg. please issue a mandatory recall before someone dies, if it hasn't happened already. thanks. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. while driving at speeds of 35mph, the hid headlights would fail intermittently. the dealer advised there were no complaints similar to his failure. any repairs made to the vehicle would be at the owners expense. the contact attempted to contact the manufacturer however, his call went unanswered. there have been no repairs made to the vehicle to date. the failure mileage was 40,000 and the current mileage was 45,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. while driving at speeds of 30 mph, the vehicle exhibited abnormal surging and the headlights became inoperable. the vehicle had not been received any repairs to correct the failure. the failure mileage was 18,195 and the current mileage was 18,200.

Passenger headlight low beam functions intermittently. at some times the light is at full intensity, at other times the light is completely dead, and sometimes the light output is a fraction of full output. hid lights should last 150k plus miles. toyota dealer wanted $400 to replace bulb and would not guarantee this was the problem. independent repair shop wanted $190 for same repair. this is an enormous safety hazard and sort of crazy that toyota has this defect and has not determined the root cause. *tr

My 2007 toyota, prius passenger side randomly stops working. when turn off the switch and turn on it starts working. this has been going since mid april of 2010. on 08/18/2010 both the headlights stopped working on the freeway. as soon as i turned off the switch and turned on, both head light started working. i have talked to another prius owner and he seems to have the similar problem with his headlights. *tr

Intermittent headlight operation on hid headlights 2007 toyota prius. both headlights went out at the same time while traveling on i75 last night. after almost wrecking, we pulled to the side of the road. after turning lights off for a while they came back on and started working again. this seems to be a frequent occurrence according to blogs on the internet. i contacted the dealer and they said if they had to replace the unit it would be in the thousands of dollars!!!!! ($1100 for headlight computer, $500- $600+ for headlight bulbs and another $1100 for light kits) i think that is completely ridiculous to expect someone to pay that much just to be able to drive there car safely! none of this was revealed when the car was purchased! how could anyone expect to pay that kind of money to keep there headlights working? please help, we cannot afford to drive safely now! *tr

Tl * the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. while driving at speeds of 65 mph, both headlights failed. the parking lights were still operable and when engaging the dimmer switch, the parking lights failed as well. when turning the light switch back on, the lights were operating as normal. the vehicle had not been taken to the dealer or a repair shop. the contact stated this was the second occurrence of the failure. the failure and current mileage were 51,000.

Since buying my 2007 prius, i have had an ongoing problem with either the driver's-side or passenger-side headlights going out, usually within 5-10 minutes after starting the car. on one occasion, both headlights went out at once while my husband and i were on a bridge on an interstate highway. the headlights usually come back on after quickly turning the light switch off and then back on. i talked with a repairman at my toyota dealer about the problem several months ago and he indicated that toyota had gotten some bad bulbs. but i find it hard to believe that is the problem. i began experiencing the problem shortly after buying the car when i was stopped at a driver's license check and the police officer told me the driver's side light was out. when i arrived home about 15 minutes later and checked the light, it was on. clearly this is a very dangerous situation. *tr

My headlights have been turning off randomly either separately or together. as time goes on they are getting worse and worse to the point of where they won't stay on for more than 2 to 3 minutes until i have to manually switch them off and on again. i have been pulled over countless times for this and it's almost getting to the point of dangerous because i can't even tell when they go out. if someone didn't see me they would hit me head on. i don't feel safe driving my own car at night out of fear of getting pulled over or getting hit because my headlights will not stay on at all. i've had enough of this and hope there's something that can be done because they've already been replaced and nothing has changed. something needs to happen because i know i'm not the only one with this problem. i've heard of countless reports of this happening. this happens randomly without warning or reason. they will flicker at any time any place no matter what. i can not keep them on for anything. please i'm begging for any kind of assistance for this matter. i love my car and don't want to have to get another one for this. i've already tried fixing it and nothing has changed. i'd really appreciate any help possible.

My headlights in my prius are only 2 years old and are already going out. i rarely replace headlights in other cars and 2 years for a $500 repair is fraud. nothing leading up to it other than the headlights just started flickering about a month ago. it occurs almost every time we turn on the headlights. not corrected yet. the lamps were replaced right at about 2 years ago (they were damaged then). *tr

Almost immediately after the purchase of our new prius, i noticed flickering of the hid headlights. i thought it odd but had never used hid headlamps before. this past winter i noticed the left headlight would stop illuminating altogether. i figured i would have to replace the bulb but then found that if i turned the headlight switch to the off position and then back to the on position the headlight would come back on. since the cost to replace the headlamp is rather expensive and there is no guarantee the replacement would solve the problem, i continue to drive the vehicle at night watching for when the headlight goes out. i keep my fog lamps on all the time so i have forward illumination in case both headlights go out. once i see the light has gone out, i wait until i stop at a traffic control device or there is no oncoming traffic to quickly turn the headlight switch off and on again to illuminate the headlight. i had one experience recently where the left headlight had gone out and before i had opportunity to turn the headlight switch off and on again, the right headlight also went out. fortunately i had the fog lamps on as i had my wife and 7 month old granddaughter in the vehicle with me. but as before, once i turned the headlight switch off and then on again, both headlights came back on. *tr

Passenger-side front headlight works intermittently. turns on okay, then dims and eventually goes out.

One or both headlights go off while driving. problem first occurred on march 12th, 2010 and since then has increased in frequency occurring at intervals of typically less than 30 minutes driving. sometimes the headlight(s) flicker briefly before going off; at other times there is no warning. turning the light switch off and back on is effective in turning the headlights back on. *cn

My 2007 prius head lights turn off while driving. in most cases only one light will go out at a time. but there has been at least 3 instances in the last week where both lights have turned off while driving. i turn the light knob off and on when i notice the outage.

2007 toyota prius headlights issue. as i am driving the lights will randomly turn off. i contacted the toyota dealership and they said that you can replace the light bulb. this did not fix the situation. the lights still continue to randomly turn off.

Since two years old the headlights have occasionally flickered, and the pass. side has gone out. turning them off momentarily and back on solved the problem. lately it's gotten worse, and i finally had my mechanic replace the pass. side bulb. the new bulb ($85) was worse and now i'm told the "ballast" needs replacement for hundreds of dollars. of course the safety issue at night is primary, but toyota was derelict in their duty not to advise customers of this highly unusual, potential cost when selling me the car. i've never paid more than $15 for a headlight and have always replaced them myself. also, the owners manual suggests an easy replacement. my mechanic had to partially remove the headlight assembly. that was another misrepresentation. *tr

I am the owner of a 2007 prius. the car has 66,000 miles. the driver headlight has been working on and off. a couple months ago (feb. 2010) my driver headlight went off a couple times. a month ago i was driving down the highway at nighttime and both headlights went off. cars were honking at me and i was very worried because i was on a non very well lit area. i stopped a bit later and turned off the engine. at this point, both lights came back on. i checked with the dealership. they say i need to change both headlights. the cost will be more than 500 dollars. i have extended warranty but it will not be covered. right now i don't have this kind of money and since the problem has not presented again i decided to check online to see if other people are experiencing this specific problem. i found out there are quite a few and people have been complaining already for more than 4 years. could it be something else than just headlights? [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

My 2007 prius has a safety issue with the driver's side hid headlight. the car had 36,500 miles when the problem began in march 2010. the light would go out without warning and turning the lights off and on would make the light work for a short while until it went out again. the light stopped working completely in april. the dealer gave me a quote of $685 to replace the headlight and headlight assembly. the service manager reduced the price to $150 plus $50 for labor. i am filing a complaint with toyota. headlights that shut off while driving is a safety issue and it appears there is a design defect in the 2007 prius. please continue to investigate this safety issue and force toyota to conduct a recall. thank you. *tr

I began a 70 mile trip on the interstate at dusk in my 2007 prius with the headlights on, or so i thought. it seemed they were not illuminating the road as well as usual. i turned my brights on to better see the curve on an interchange and the lights went completely off. i turned the brights off and the lights came back on, but i had drifted near a concrete barrier. i averted a crash, but was close enough to the barrier to see that i had foglamps on, but no headlights. normally this arrangement is not possible. you can have headlights on without foglamps, but not foglamps without headlights. turning the headlight switch off, then on did not help. when i stopped, leaving the car turned on. i was able to reproduce the bright switch turning off all the lights. the headlights would not turn on. i turned off the car, when i turned it back on, the headlights worked normally. in july, 2009, my daughter was driving this prius and was stopped for having one headlight out. it worked when i took it to the toyota dealer the next day. then for several days, one headlight or the other was out intermittently but not reproduce-ably. then the problem cleared up until this incident in march, 2010. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. the contact stated that the headlights shut off intermittently. there were no warning lights prior to the failure. the dealer inspected the vehicle and stated that they could not find anything wrong with it. the vin was not available at the time of the complaint. the failure mileage was 130000 and the current mileage was 141000.

I've got a package 2 2007 prius. one of the headlights keeps going out. i can't really tell when or how it goes out since i can't see it. i'll notice it when i see the reflection in the back of another car. if i turn the bright lights on and off it has no effect, but when i turn them all the way off and back on the light comes back. sometimes on long trips it will stay on the whole time, sometimes it won't. sometimes on short trips it will go out, sometimes it won't. it is not an event i can make happen. *tr

I have been driving a 2007 toyota prius since july 2007. the hid headlights switch off automatically while driving. sometimes the left hid switches off but the right headlights stays on. the headlights turn off but the display from the inside says that headlights are turned on. the headlights come on if i turn the headlights off and turn them back on then both of them are working till they switch off again during driving. almost got in a t-bone accident when the other driver did not see me. if i am driving using cruise-control, the car seem to speed up a bit just for a sec a or two when you initially apply brakes. *tr

1. wife is leary of driving our 2007 toyota prius because of problem brakes. we need a better description of what happens when we try to turn off the engine going 100 mph. 2. lights are poor. we cannot see very far ahead in this deer infested environment. i have better lights on my 1997 hyundai 3. one or the other headlight flickers and goes out for no understandable reason. we turn the lights off and turn them on again and it works ok. this could be a safety hazard. what is being done to fix it. 4. seating. my first encounter with the toyota complaint system cam about as i was trying to get the driver seat moved back because i have long legs. the dealer said they have no way of fixing this but that i should go to the after market. i asked if toyota would accept an aftermarket solution. the dealer said that they will evaluate it after it is installed to tell us if it meets safety specifications no aftermarket supplier will try to fix this because they have not assurance that it will be accepted by toyota. yet toyota gives no technical information about what is acceptable. i complained formally to the dealer and got nowhere. i then sent a formal complaint to national toyota. they passed the complaint back to the dealer for response. for me this is a major flaw in the toyota complaint handling system. they have a closed loop when it comes to complaints. 5. i like the car and it gets the mileage i expected. i am not sure i will ever get another toyota if there are reasonable alternative that get good mileage. *tr

The passenger side headlight bulb on my wife's 2007 prius goes out intermittently, after it's been turned on at dusk. turning the lights off and then on again makes the light work for a short while until it goes out again. not something we should be doing while driving down the road. the dealer told her to wait until the light goes completely out before bringing it in to be replaced. i tried to replace it for her but found it required quite a bit of skill and quite a bit of time. this has been an on-going problem, since christmas, 2009. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. the contact was driving approximately 30 mph with the headlights on when they suddenly failed to function. the failure occurred at various speeds. the contact replaced both headlamp bulbs. the failure continued to occur after the replacement of the bulbs. the contact stated the failure was related to the headlamp assembly. the vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. the failure mileage was approximately 60,000.

I have a 2007 prius. i have experienced intermittent problems with both head lights turning off. sometimes they both go out at the same time. the first time i took it to the dealership they said they could not recreate the problem. i took it in yesterday and one bulb was replaced for $275. i understand i am not the only one who has had this problem. i am concerned about driving at night, because both lights have gone off at same time. *tr

The passenger side headlight of my 2007 toyota prius stopped working. i had my 30,000 mile inspection at my local toyota dealer about 2 weeks ago, and they did not mention this problem. it is a continuous light failure. i have contacted my toyota dealer to have it replaced, but they want to charge me >$500 for parts and labor.*tr

The headlamps on my 2007 toyota prius intermittently fail. they periodically flicker. the headlamps operate after being turned off for some time. no crash yet! dangerous situation! *tr

Intermittent failure of drivers side hid headlight. turning the headlights off then back on typically restores normal operation for several days. *tr

2007 toyota prius with tire failure and brakes grabbing. *kb the battery and headlights failed. the consumer stated toyota has since removed this particular type of bulb and assembly from production. when the vehicle was 1 year old the consumer was stopped by the police and given a warning for the headlight being out. however, when the consumer and her husband exited the vehicle, they along with the police officer found both headlights were working and he let them go without a citation. the consumer has since discovered that one headlight or the other will just go out on occasion during every drive. the brightness of the headlights began to dim when the vehicle was only a year old. toyota recommended using the headlights less and they further recommended not using the highly touted feature that allows the lights to automatically turn off after the vehicle has been turned off. last month, the consumer received a letter from toyota regarding information about a problem with the hid headlights. the letter stated the customer support program would reimburse for some cost relative to the defective headlights. however the local dealer did not agree and the cost far exceeded anything mentioned in the letter. the dealer informed the consumer the cost of installation for new bulbs would be $245 in labor for each headlight replacement, that was in addition to the exorbitant cost of the bulbs themselves. *jb

I own a 2007 toyota prius. when the car was less than a year old, the lights began to go off and on. due to my mileage the dealership refused repair. filed a formal complaint with toyota 7/2009, again repair refused. by flipping the switch they would come back on and work sporadically. the flickering causes the bulbs to blow. as of today, both headlights stopped working at the same time, causing me to have to stop driving. replacing the bulb does not fix the problem. previous dealership in johnson city, tn acknowledge defect but only offered to pay $400 towards repair. seems this issue won't be addressed until a death or accident occurs. car is very unsafe at night without working lights! *tr

2007 prius, with hid headlights. both lights go out at the same time, leaving you in total darkness. when you try to turn the high-beams on in this condition the entire dash lighting system blacks out. this has happened on numerous occasions before we actually understood they problem. it was very infrequent at first, starting on thanksgiving 2009. it has happened twice this past weekend. i have called a toyota dealer and they tell me we need to replace the head lamps. i find it extremely difficult to believe that the entire lighting fails, because of a bad headlight, let alone add in the attempt to switch on the high beams and the entire dash lights go out. we have not been able to get the car to a dealership yet due to scheduling. *tr

The driver side hid headlights were failing intermittently. at one point all of the headlights failed while driving at night on the highway. fog lamps were still working. replaced the driver side headlight. 2 months later passenger side headlight started working intermittently. didn't wait for a complete failure to happen while i was on the highway again. replaced passenger side headlight. *tr

While driving my 2007 prius to sonoma for the weekend both of my headlights failed to work simultaneously!! this left me driving in complete darkness at 60mph and my 5 year old in the back seat! it was terrifying for that second in which i had no light source whatsoever. no streetlights, no headlights, not even any moonlight! this could have caused a serious crash as i was on unfamiliar roads and i had to turn my lights all the way off and then on again to get any source of light! i hope someone at this agency is planning on doing something about this before someone gets killed! i know i'm not the only one with this problem out there! *tr

My headlights went out twice this week on my 2007 toyota prius. *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2007 toyota prius. the headlights were flashing on and off. the failure occurred intermittently. whenever the lights came back on they were dim. when the vehicle was taken to the dealer they stated that nothing was wrong with the vehicle. the failure mileage was 51000. the vehicle current mileage was 54000. updated 04/05/10 *bf the drivers side headlight was replaced in 2008 after only 35,000 miles. updated 08/11/10

2007 toyota prius hid headlights turns on/off intermittently. right headlight went out, then next day after engine was shut off for a day, right headlight began working again. then 2 days later left headlight went out and after engine shut off for a day, left headlight began working again. bulbs are not blown as they continue to work but toyota recommends changing them at a cost of $400. i have a concern about both headlights going out simultaneously while driving at night. upon further inquiries, it appears many others are experiencing the same or similar problems

I was driving my 2007 toyota prius when the left headlight suddenly went off. i had to stop the car because i could not see well. i turned off the headlights and turned them back on. subsequently, the left headlight was working fine again. this incident has happened several times before and involved the right headlight. i took the car to a toyota dealer and the right headlight was replaced. now, the same incident is happening with the left headlight. *jb

There are intermittent problems with both headlights and both tail lights on my 2007 toyota prius. bulbs have been replaced but the problem persists. my prius includes the hid headlamp package. headlights will appear to work when turned on initially, then one or both will fail while driving or stopped. failure can be temporarily resolved by turning the lights off and back on. time to failure is not consistent; failure may occur within 60 seconds or may not happen at all during an hour long drive. the tail lights appear to work randomly. i noticed the driver side tail light was not working, but later found it working and passenger side tail light was not working instead. this problem has resulted in one police traffic stop. *tr